Streamlined jet aircraft tow target holder



Dec. 22, 1959 D. R. FRANKLIN 2,918,235

STREAMLINED JET AIRCRAFT TOW TARGET HOLDER Filed Jan. 16, 1956 United States Patent STREAMLINED JET AIRCRAFT'TOW TARGET HOLDER- DWaine R. Franklin, Yuma, Ariz;, assignor to the United States of America asrepresented by the Secretary of the Air Force Application January 16, 1956, SerialNo. 559,495

4 Claims, (Cl. 2735.'3)

(Granted under Title 35, US. Code (1952.),sec. 266) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the United States Government for governmental purposes without payment'to meof': any royalty thereon.

This invention pertains to tow target. apparatus and, more specifically, tow target supporting means to be utilized in. combination with reel means and atow target tow line, an object being to provide means for attachment and support of the tow target prior to take ofi in such a way that the tow target will not interfere with the take-oh and flight of the target towing jet aircraft, yet will be easily releasable and automatically withdrawable for towing in flight without necessity of adjustment of'the support Itisqanother object, of this invention. to provide .supporting means of simple. constructionand conformable to all type. aircraft.

It is a further object to provide a-device positioned and constructed so as to offer low air resistance and is easily attachable toand detachable from" the aircraft.

It is still a further object to provide a tow target supporting means for a jet propelled aircraft positioned in such a way as to prevent severance or damage to the lightweight tow line and tow target due to the heat of the jet stream emitting from the aircraft.

A still further object is the provision of a tow target support and winding reel arrangement for high speed jet aircraft in which the tow target support is located in laterally offset relation to the aircraft jet stream axis with the winding reel connected to the aircraft and cable guide means on the aircraft between the reel and the support for guiding the tow cable laterally to the support and then rearwardly in the flight direction, together with means on the support for receiving and supporting the tow target in offset relation to the jet stream during takeoff and landing conditions.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings in which:

Figure l is a perspective schematic view showing the target holder on the wing tank, and the tow target, shown dotted, inserted into the holder and held therein by the reeling device and tow line;

Figure 2 is a detailed perspective view of the target holder attachment to a wing tip tank sleeve or shaft;

Figure 3 is an edge view of one of the supports; and

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a modified location of attachment of the target holder at a different point on the wing tip tank.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, there is shown a jet target aircraft 1 having a fuselage 2, wings 3, a wing tip tank 4, the rearwardly tapered end portion of the wing tip tank 4 having a hub 5 acting as a con necting member for attachment of the streamlined tow target holder or supporting means 6 to the rear end of the wing tip tank 4.

Wound within the reeling device 7 is a light frangible tow line 8, the operational details of the reeling device 2,918,285 Patented .Dec. 22, 1959 7 being described in the copending application of Woodrow W. Wilson, Serial No. 548,284 filed November 21', 1955, now Patent No. 2,778,584. A streamlined, frangible tow target 9, shown in dotted linesin Figure 1, preferably constructed as described in my copending application, Serial No. 559,496 filed January 16, 1956, is connected to the opposite end of tow line 8. The tow line 8, preferably of nylon composition, is guided in its travel from the reeling device 7 to the holder 6 by suitable pulley or guide means 16 attached to the tow target holder connection Sat the rear end portion ofthe wing tip tank. The target holder 6 is formed, by the rearward end portion of the tank 4 or hub 5, and three or more rearwardly projecting prongs or supporting braces 10 are radially disposed and evenly .spacedabout, and fixed to, the rearward end portion of thetank 4 or hub member 5 by suitable means, such as, bolts 11. Each brace or arm 10 may be resilient and diverges outwardly and rearwardly at 13 from its connection to the hub 5, then is bent at 14 to extend substantially parallel to the other races and flight direction axis of the aircraft, then is again bent or flared outwardly at 15 at its rear or outer extremity. In this way, the frangible tow target will be safely drawn and guided into snug supported position within the braces 10 by the rounded or outwardly flared ends 15 Without danger of piercing or damaging the frangible tow target 9, the nose of the tow target'ent'ering and fitting into theoutwardly diverging portion 13; with the body of the tow target supported by the portion 14 and retained in the holder by tension on the towline'. Of course, the bolts 11 permit easy and rapid attachment and detachment of the supporting braces from the hubS or wing tank, although othersuit'able' connecting means may be used, such as, clamps, or if permanent attachment is desired, welds may be used.

Before flight, the nose of the target 9 is hooked to the tow line 8 and drawn into the holder 6, the tow line 8 being tensioned by the reel device 7 to secure the target in position in the holder. The tow target. receiving braces 10 thus combine with the reeling device 7 and tow line 8 to maintain the target in a secure position out of the jet stream for the take-off and landing. It is to be noted that the support means 6 and target 9 being aligned in the direction of flight of the aircraft will offer low drag resistance to the flight of the jet aircraft and will be out of the jet stream.

In flight, the operator of the towing aircraft is able to control release of the target 9 by braking means (not shown) applied to the reel device 7. When it is desired to release the target 9 from the holder, the brake means are released, which in turn releases the tow line 8 to allow the line to pay out from the reeling device and thus permit the target to be displaced rearwardly from the holder by the drag of the slip stream over the target, and also by the pressure of the slip stream against the forward portion and nose of the tow target, since the nose is not completely enclosed by the braces. In this way, rapid withdrawal of the target will be insured.

After the target run, the target is retrieved by rewinding the tow line, causing the target to be guided into proper alignment and supporting relation with the braces 10 by the outer diverging end portions 15. The target is therefore adequately supported and secured prior to landing the target aircraft.

Figure 4 illustrates another way of attaching the target holder 6 to the extension member 20 projecting laterally from the side of the wing tank 4. Of course, the extension member 20 could also be placed at the extremity of the wing 3 itself, or the fuselage; however, it is imperative that the target be placed at as great a laterally offset distance as possible from the jet stream to prevent damage to the tow line and target from the heat of the 3 jet stream, depending upon the position of the jet exhausts.

It is to be understood that the above description is merely for the purpose of illustration, and that various other modifications may be devised which come within the scope of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A tow target system for securing and releasing a streamlined, airborne tow target comprising in combination a reeling device attached to a jet aircraft, a tow line regulated by said reeling device, guide means laterally spaced from said reeling deviceto guide said tow line, and target holding means including a plurality of outwardly divergent brace members connected at their forward ends to said guide means, said brace members extending rearwardly from said guide means in circumferentially spaced relation and co-operable with said reeling device and tow line to receive a tow target with the nose of the tow target contacting said guide means, said brace members being spaced to engage the forward portion of the tow target so as to maintain the tow target in a position substantially parallel to the axis of flight of said air craft and to admit a material portion of the slip stream passing said brace members against the forward portion of the tow target.

2. The combination as claimed in claim 1, in which said brace members each have an outwardly diverging target receiving end portion at its extremity to receive the target and to prevent damage thereto.

3. A tow target system for aircraft aerial target practice comprising in combination tow target releasing and retrieving means attached to a jet aircraft, and target supporting means fixed to said aircraft comprising a hub portion and a plurality of tow target receiving and supporting brace members attached to said hub portion and projecting rearwardly and outwardly from said hub por-.

tion, each brace member having two outwardly diverging portions at its opposite ends joined by a portion extending parallel to the central axis of said hub portion to resiliently embrace the target, said brace members being eo-operable with said releasing and retrieving means to secure a tow target in position within said target supporting means.

4. In a jet aircraft tow target launching system wherein there is provided a winding reel and towline, a tow target holder in combination therewith for the holding and release of a streamlined frangible tow target, said tow target holder comprising a hub connection portion attached to the rearward end portion of a wing tip tank of the jet aircraft; at least three resilient prong members projecting rearwardly and outwardly from said hub connection portion to receive and flexibly support the nose and forward portion of the streamlined tow target; and guide means attached to the rearward end of said hub connection to guide the travel of said towline from said winding reel to the nose portion of the tow target, said resilient prongs evenly spaced about said hub connection to admit a material portion of the slip stream passing said prongs against the forward end of the tow target to provide sufiicient air drag on the tow target to withdraw the same from said prong members when the jet aircraft is in flight and as said towline is withdrawn from said winding reel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,272,213 Lear Feb. 10, 1942 2,432,371 Berberich Dec. 9, 1947 2,667,351 McKinney Jan. 26, 1954 2,813,719 Hopper Nov. 19, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 667,202 Great Britain Feb. 27, 1952 

